


Fatherhood or Something Like it

by animehead



Category: Tiger & Bunny
Genre: Father's Day, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-06-17
Updated: 2012-06-17
Packaged: 2017-11-08 00:04:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,509
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/436901
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/animehead/pseuds/animehead
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Kaede has gotten her period and Barnaby doesn't have a clue.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Fatherhood or Something Like it

To say Barnaby is alarmed is an understatement when he sees Kaede bolt through the front door and into the bathroom, slamming the door shut behind her. He considers waiting a few moments to ask her if everything is okay, but the sound of her sobbing is cause enough for him to immediately leave the sofa along with the book he’s currently reading and walk cautiously to the bathroom door.

He hesitates, trying his best to calm his nerves before he knocks. He’s still not quite used to his own emotions and assumes that those of a twelve-year-old girl are even more difficult to understand. But he cares for Kaede, _loves_ her, and he’ll try his best to help her through anything causing her harm, physically, mentally, or emotionally.

Taking a deep breath, Barnaby knocks softly. “Kaede, is everything okay? Are… Are you sick?”

“No,” Kaede whimpers from the other side of the door. She’s still crying and the sound successfully breaks Barnaby’s heart in two.

“Did something happen with your friends?” If that was the case, he would personally have a talk with them. He had allowed Kaede to hang out with a group of friends in good faith that they were actually her friends. He would feel responsible for any grief that came about from her being with them.

“No, that’s not it,” Kaede says and even though her voice is cracking from trying to swallow back her tears, Barnaby hears her quite well.

Barnaby’s stumped now and he thinks about calling Kotetsu and telling him to hurry up and get _home_ because Kaede is sad and he’s doing a terrible job of finding out why. Pressing his hand gently against the door, Barnaby sighs and closes his eyes. He can barely remember the times where his father solved his problems and wiped away his tears. That was so long ago and trying to recall those thoughts still sting. But still, Barnaby makes a mental note to pay a visit to his father’s grave sometime today. He plans to decorate it with flowers for Father’s Day after he and Kaede take Kotetsu out to dinner. That is, if he can get her to tell him what’s wrong so he can hopefully make an attempt at fixing it.  

“Kaede, I want to help you, but you have to tell me what’s—”

“It came,” Kaede blurts out.

Barnaby frowns. Well, that doesn’t help him out very much. He taps his index finger gently against the door and prepares to ask her what exactly came, but thankfully Kaede continues.

“We learned about it in health class, but I didn’t think… And I called baa-chan, but she’s not answering the phone.”

Barnaby’s still frowning and still _waiting_ for Kaede to say exactly what on earth she’s talking about when something finally clicks. Oh. _Oh_.

…Oh.

Oh, god.

“Okay… Um.” Barnaby panics now because he’s _never_ had to deal with _this_. Without much thought, he slaps a hand over his mouth, not sure whether or not he wants to scream or laugh at how terrified he is at the moment. He wants to tell Kaede that everything will be fine, but instead he places his other hand over the first and stares wide eyed at the bathroom door.

What should he do? He thinks about calling Karina or Pao-Lin. Hell, even Nathan would probably know what to do at a time like this, but he’s been around Kaede enough to know that she certainly wouldn’t appreciate other people knowing about such a delicate situation.

What he needs is a game plan. He needs time to think and analyze the situation, but he doubts Kaede would enjoy sitting on the toilet for that long.

_Oh, god_.

But he has an idea. It’s not a very good one, but it’s better than nothing and right now he’s really, _really_ , nervous.

“I’ll be right back. Don’t go anywhere.”

“I won’t,” Kaede replies. “I don’t want to make a—”

And Barnaby is out the door front door before Kaede can finish her statement. He’s not wearing shoes and he’s thankful that he doesn’t care much for the ridiculous orange and black stripped socks Kotetsu bought him as a gag gift as he rushes to the townhouse next door to Kotetsu’s home. A woman lives there with three daughters, so she _has_ to know about this type of thing.

When he rings the doorbell, he’s almost startled by how quickly it’s answered by the woman herself, but he musters up a smile instead of a frantic cry for help.

“Why, hello there. How can I help you?”

Barnaby clears his throat. “Good afternoon,” he says and is relieved that his voice comes out evenly. “I’ve seen to have run into… Kotetsu is… Kaede…” He realizes how pathetic and crazy he must sound starting sentences and not finishing them. “My daughter has gotten her…” he waves his hand through the air as if that will explain things, “and she needs something until we can get to the store.”

“Oh,” the woman smiles. It’s a kind one and Barnaby is comforted. Thank god for good neighbors. “Give me just a moment.”

In Barnaby’s personal opinion, a moment is a minute and it takes the woman about four of those to return, but he doesn’t complain and he doesn’t ask questions when she hands him three tiny packages of something wrapped in yellow, crinkly, paper with a tiny stick of what looks like white tape at the top. Instead, he thanks the woman and dutifully carries those three mysterious packages as if they are rarest of jewels.

Just as he reaches the front door to Kotetsu’s townhouse, his cell phone rings and he’s thankful to see a picture of Kotetsu’s smiling face on the small glass screen.

“Kotetsu,” Barnaby says the second after he accepts the call.

“Hi, Bunny,” Kotetsu purrs on the other end. “I’ve been thinking about you all day.”

“That’s wonderful to hear,” Barnaby replies. “But you’ll have to stop for a moment and think about something a bit more important right now.”

“What could be more important than my Lil’ Bunny—”

“Kaede got—”

“Who I can’t wait to have for dessert—”

“Her—”

“After we’ve—”

“Period.”

“Huh?” Kotetsu says. “Bunny, what did you just say?”

Barnaby sighs and grips the phone in his hand. “Kotetsu, please don’t make me say that again.”

“She got her… What?! When?! Where is she?!”

“Stop yelling!” Barnaby shouts.

“She’s in the bathroom. I went next door to borrow some… stuff.”

“Eh, Bunny. I don’t think girls borrow those. That’s kind of gross.”

Barnaby huffs, blushes, and stands at the front door with his cell phone cradled between his ear and neck and his hand wrapped around the doorknob. “Just hurry and get home. I don’t know what I’m doing,” he quietly admits.

Of course Barnaby has no way of seeing it, but Kotetsu smiles. “Don’t worry, Bunny,” he says. “You’re doing a great job. I don’t know where I’d be without you.”

Barnaby blushes further. “Just hurry up.”

“On my way.”

“Oh, and Kotetsu.”

“Yeah, Bunny?”

“Happy Father’s Day.”

Kotetsu’s still smiling when he says, “Happy Father’s Day to you, too, Bunny.” He immediately hangs up before Barnaby can even attempt to protest.

Barnaby slides the phone back into his pocket and makes his way back into the townhouse, up the stairs, and back to his previous position in front of the closed bathroom door.

“Okay, Kaede. I have something for you. I’m just going to… slide them under the door, okay?”

“Okay.”

Barnaby bends down and shoves each tiny package under the door, pushing them as far as they will go in hopes that they get close enough for Kaede to reach without incident. “Do you need me to do anything else?”

“No, it’s fine now. Thanks.”

And so Barnaby leaves her to it and goes back to the couch where he’s still too nervous to finish reading his book. A few minutes later when Kaede emerges from the bathroom and into the living room where she stands behind Barnaby who has read the same paragraph about fifty times.

“Is everything okay?” Barnaby asks. He’s too embarrassed to turn around and look at Kaede, but his words are sincere. “If you need me to get more, I can go—” He’s interrupted when he feels Kaede’s arms wrap gently around his neck in a loose hug and her lips press against his cheek.

She can only imagine how difficult and awkward all this must have been for Barnaby and she truly appreciates it. “Thanks, _dad_ ,” she whispers against his ear before chuckling, releasing his neck, and disappearing down the hall. The loud blare of music tells Barnaby and anyone within a ten mile radius that she’s in her bedroom trying to destroy her hearing.

And Barnaby continues to sit, his face red, his heart full, and his lips tugging up at the corners, offering a smile at the wall, at his book, and at those ridiculous orange and black striped socks.


End file.
